Avalon is Britain's very own Atlantis - a mystical kingdom rich in myth and lore. Legends tell how the body of King Arthur was taken to Avalon, where he would wait till his nation's hour of need. The truth is that Avalon was a very real place with a turbulent history of its own. In "The Keys to Avalon", the authors use neglected ancient sources, geographical clues and modern maps to take us to the heart of this realm. They uncover a remarkable landscape steeped in evidence of a bygone age. En route, they debunk the claims of other places to the name of Avalon, and literally redraw the map of Dark Age Britain, forcing us to re-examine all of our theories about this era. Ultimately, they reveal the kernel of historical truth at the heart of the Arthurian legend and unlock the borders of a lost land.
Author(s): Steve Blake, Scott Lloyd, John Baldock
Publisher: Element Books
Year: 2000
Language: English
Pages: XVIII+302
City: Shaftesbury
Acknowledgements viii
List of Illustrations x
Preface xiii
Part One
The Arthurian Enigma 1
The Myth of Arthur 7
The Keys to Arthur's Kingdom 21
Britain Before Arthur 45
Merlin and Uthyr Pendragon 71
Arthur the Battle Leader 87
King Arthur and Camlan 105
Part Two
The Keys to Avalon 121
Avalon, Annwn and the Celtic Otherworld 139
The Politics of Arthur and Avalon 155
In Search of Glaestingaburh 167
Avalon: The World's End 183
The Grail Land 199
Epilogue
Appendix One: Arthur's Relatives 218
Appendix Two: The Unknown Arthur 225
Appendix Three: The 'Lost' Kingdoms of Northern Britain 237
Appendix Four: Source Materials 243
Select Bibliography 255
Notes 257
Glossary of Personal Names 277
Gazetteer of Comparative Place Names 278
Glossary Elements of Welsh Place Names 280
About the Authors 282
Useful Addresses 282
Index 284
Stop Press 302
